Flüh - Aesch (ruin tour)

Talissa with Finja (from 30 March 2018 ):

Duration: 06:40 hrs (time in motion = 03:46)
Start: Tram stop Flüh, train station
(Alternative start: Tram stop Leymen, Station (F) Destination: Tram stop Aesch BL, village
Arrival by public transport recommended, as start and destination are not the same. Sure-footedness for dog and human are highly recommended for this tour!

From the tram stop "Flüh, Bahnhof" go to Leymenstrasse, turn right and follow the road towards Leymen. Shortly after the footpath stops, turn left and walk up over the meadow. Once you reach the edge of the forest, the path becomes a little wider. Because I couldn't see the shortcut through the forest and there were also some fallen trees, I followed the path until the next crossing. At the crossroads the path comes to the right, which leads from the tram stop "Leymen, Station (F)" onto the route. Shortly after, I turned left, up to Landskron Castle. The castle Landskron is, like almost all castles and ruins on this tour, very impressive and also in a very good condition. If you want you can follow a path to the castle Alt Landskron, but there is not much left of it. Back at the castle Landskron I recommend the detour around the castle with dog, because not all dogs like a staircase with bars. I carried Finja down the stairs and only afterwards I realized that I probably could have walked around the castle. At the bottom of the stairs I turn left and follow a path called Grenzwächterweg down to Flüh. Between the vines you follow the "Oberer Landskronweg" on the right side until you reach the valley road. Continue straight on to Hofstetterstrasse, where you turn right and about 130 m later you have the opportunity to visit the small feudal castle Sternenberg on the right. The path is well made and probably newer, so that the ascent is no problem. To get into the castle you have to take a stone staircase, for which you should be sure-footed! A person can hold on to a chain, but you should not forget that a dog cannot. Finja and I are slowly up and down, whereby I have secured them of course! We continue on the Hofstetterstrasse towards Flüh-Hofstetten. After the bus stop "Hofstetten SO, Unterdorf" turn right into the Hutmattweg. Once you arrive on Mariasteinstrasse, first turn right and then left into the street "Ob den Gärten". At the next crossing turn right again and walk to the edge of the forest. At the top there is a beautiful view of Flüh-Hofstetten and we used the bench for a short break. Follow the Sennmattweg for the next kilometre. After a bunker/water reservoir (I'm not sure anymore) we turn right uphill. The path looks like a riverbed, but we were not alone there and up there you come to the ruin Fürstenstein. Directly beside or rather under the ruin there is a nice barbecue place to stay. Either from the dining place as also from the top there is a great view! Above the grill place there is also a board with information about the ruin. Approximately at the next barbecue place, which was occupied on our day, we turn right and go up again. To the so called "blue viewpoint" we follow different single trails. ATTENTION: Here you can meet a biker! If you don't want to take this risk or this path, you can take a detour up to the Dreiländerstein. At the top, through the trees you have a view of the Blauen region and the nearest refreshment and rest area. We turn left and follow the Dreilndersteinweg including a right turn to the next bigger barbecue area. This barbecue place was also occupied, but the giant bench looks very cool from the path as well. Turn left and follow the Plattenweg for about 400 m before we turn right downhill. Turn right again at the next turnoff and walk towards the vineyards. On the left side you can see the ruin Frohberg, which we just passed. You can, like us, make an extra curve or you can walk directly through the path between the vines. A small path with stairs leads down to the road, where you can also see a waterfall. ATTENTION: For not sure-footed hikers and dogs I recommend to "break off" the tour here and walk through the village Aesch to the tram. A little above the waterfall a path leads to the Schalberg cave. The ascent to or over the cave is the trickiest part. At the top, a narrow path leads to the Schalberg ruins, where you could take a short break including a barbecue.

To get to the next ruin to, you go back on the path in front of the Schalberg ruin and turn right around the ruin. The path continues on to the Engenstein ruins, from where you could certainly enjoy a beautiful view. The entrance is a ladder, which dogs cannot climb. The last ruin which can be reached via the narrow path is the ruin Münchsberg. One can admire these from below. After the ruins of Münchsberg there is a revolving gate, which at least Finja found a little scary at first. The Burgengratweg ends on the Bergmattenweg and the tour continues straight ahead on the Hangelimattweg. After a left-hand bend, the tour continues on a gravel path to the right. Follow this path until you reach the last ruin of the hike, the Pfeffingen ruin. If you follow the brown arrow with a castle on it to the right, after another turn to the left you will come to the bridge which leads into the ruin. In and around the ruins of Pfeffingen there are many informative boards. We once walked through the ruin and looked at different corners and boards. At the other end there is also an exit, through which you can leave the ruin of Pfeffingen. Since we did not want to walk through the settlement, we walked on a path around Pfeffingen. Via different streets (1. Lindenweg, 2. Schlosstrasse, 3. Pfeffingerstrasse) you can reach the village church of Aesch and from there it is about 5 min to the tram stop. Cross the street at the church and turn right. Walk across the square in front of the church to the main road and then turn left only once more. After about 250 m you will reach the tram stop "Aesch BL, Dorf" and thus the end of the hike.